Saturday, June 21, 2014

Celebrate! - June 21

The biggest celebration for me this week was #AllWrite14, and everything that entailed:

Over seven round-trip hours of lively conversation about professional and personal lives. Thanks so much Josie, MaryLee, and Karen for taking that journey with me.

Being with my tweeps from around the country, learning, laughing, and talking for hours. You know you are and I am so grateful for each and every one of you!!

On MaryLee's nudge, finding this amazing shop, MudLove (check it out at mudlove.com). I bought two pieces of amazing pottery hand-crafted by them. The friends I shopped with bought many inspirational bracelets (what they are really known for), but I didn't think a bracelet would look good on me, so I passed.

My surprise and delight the very next day, when receiving a gift of the afore-mentioned bracelets from one of my Long Island tweeps. It says "inspire" and will be a guiding word for me as I embrace my literacy coach position this next year. I was incredibly touched by her generosity, and it fit perfectly!!

Time - time to meet with my professional learning network and talk about celebrations and ways we want to refine our own teaching and learning. Time built into presentations to turn and talk which allowed me to dig in even deeper to the topics. Time to talk about great books. Time to think with and talk to friends and colleagues from my own school district that I don't always have. Time to do a little sightseeing and shopping.

Lunch on the last day with someone who is incredibly dear to me. I consider her a mentor in so many ways and couldn't have been happier to spend time together.

One of the pottery purchases

My MudLove bracelet

Thinking about "gritty celebrations" after Ruth's brilliant keynote.

I came home yesterday rejuvenated and proud to call myself an educator, a teacher, and a learner.

For more celebrations, hop on over to Ruth's blog. Thanks so much to Ruth for hosting us each week!